


Afar

by HerbertBest



Category: Game Grumps
Genre: Anxiety, Crushes, Fluff, Humor, Multi, Open Marriage, Polyamory Negotiations, Polyfidelity, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-17
Updated: 2018-07-04
Packaged: 2018-07-24 13:33:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 4,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7510287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HerbertBest/pseuds/HerbertBest
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dan and Arin’s committed poly relationship is tested when both admit that they’re harboring a crush on Holly.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Cottonstones](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cottonstones/gifts).



“…I guess we’ll find out next time on Game Grumps,” Dan signed off, reaching for a bag of chips Arin had left half-smushed near the middle seat of the sofa. He took a huge bite out of the bag while Arin did a bit of beatboxing, waiting until he tapped the audio off and reaching for Arin. 

The kiss was thrilling and barely familiar now. The snuggling, however, was not, and Arin made a wonderfully cuddly refuge for him against the icy air conditioning. A few minutes passed before Arin pulled back a little and tilted his head. 

“Pink hair and tattoos?”

Dan flushed. The words had rolled off of his tongue without absolutely any warning. “You know I like all sorts of girls.” Which was fairly true; he liked all sorts of people, was attracted to scores of them on a daily basis. But there was a difference between fleeting physical attraction and romance, and Dan thought he had that figured out. But Arin just grunted into his neck. “But more importantly, I passionately adore you. Are you jealous? Because I can assure you that there’s no one else on the planet that I want as much as you.”

And, Dan thought to himself, it was perfectly fair for him to be attracted to women. Arin, after all, was still living with Suzy. 

“Yeah, I know,” Arin said. “And we’re doing the polyfidelity thing. We’d have to talk about it if we were ” Arin wrapped his tongue easily around the word that Dan, even after four Google searches and a bunch of conversations, was still somewhat unable to comprehend. The agreement had been simple; Dan and Arin had each other, and in turn Suzy expanded her horizons by trying out things with Barry that made even hentai-watching Arin blanch. It was a fair trade, no one was getting hurt and everyone ended up happy in the end.

“I only have eyes for you,” Dan affirmed, kissing Arin’s cheek.

An almost entirely true statement. There was a girl he knew very well, with pink hair and tattoos, whom he was attracted to. But she was so far out of his league she might as well be living on Mars.

*** 

“…And then he said he liked girls with pink hair and tattoos!” Arin burst out around a mouthful of taco. Suzy, sitting across the table with her spiked heels still on, raised an eyebrow.

“Swallow,” she ordered. Arin did, but he couldn’t stop himself from continuing his freak-out. 

“I mean there’s no way he could really mean her, could he?” 

Suzy shrugged. “Do we know anyone else with pink hair and tattoos?” 

“No, but…ugh!” Arin took a slug of soda. “What If I guess wrong? I don’t want to wreck what we’ve just barely started.”

“Well,” Suzy said, “why not hang out with Holly together? See if he gets nervous, ask a few questions – but do it really subtly!”

Arin flushed. “What about me? I’ve had a crush on her for weeks. What if I feel weird hanging around with her?”

Suzy grinned, reached for Arin and pecked his cheek. “Be yourself, you’ll be fine.”

“That’s what I’m worried about,” Arin sighed. The last thing he wanted to do was explain to his new boyfriend that he might have a major crush on the same woman Dan was possibly attracted to.

But he also knew there was absolutely no way around it. He absolutely had to find out if Dan was crushing on Holly, too.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan and Arin invite Holly to dinner. Things get Awkward.

He heard Arin’s voice a second before his kitchen door slammed. “Oh my god, this is serious – you’re actually cooking.”

Dan frowned as Arin rounded the corner, tossing aside his jacket and rolling up his sleeves. “Why’s that shocking? I’m not totally helpless, dude.”

“But this is a meal and you don’t cook. You don’t even know how to throw eggs around in a pan without burning them.” Arin had, in his esteemed opinion, ridden to Dan’s rescue by picking up a bunch of stuff at the local deli; Dan watched with minor disdain as his lover set several plastic bags on the kitchen table. Arin started stuffing salads into completely unused china and popped the bottle of red wine he’d picked up into the fridge.

“No, I prefer not to cook,” Dan corrected him. He finished rinsing the tochicken out and dotted the pale white surface with soy butter, then started crumbling up herbs and stuffing them carefully into its jiggling belly. “The package says it needs to be in the oven for an hour, til it browns. She’s coming at six, right?”

“On the dot.” Arin rinsed his hand, reaching for the paper towels at Dan’s elbow, and pecked the back of his lover’s neck.

“Cool, “ Dan said, popping the dish into his oven, screwing the timer leftward before pecking Arin on the lips. They both smelled medicinal, prompting Dan’s next question. “Wanna share a shower?”

“Yeah,” Arin said. “We’ve got all the time we need.”

So it seemed when they started out. But neither of them had counted on the steamy atmosphere or the warm water getting to them. When Arin found himself pressed flat against the shower wall with Dan’s fingertips exploring his ass, he had to remark upon the lack of time they had.

“We’re going to have to rush…” mumbled Arin.

“We have time,” Dan reminded him, biting the back of his neck gently. 

“Not if you keep making me feel all weird and hot,” Arin complained.

“Call me Speedy.” Dan pitched his voice higher and added, “Speedy’s gonna tap your ass ‘til you’re satisfied!”

Arin laughed so hard he almost lost his balance. By the time they were through the oven’s buzzer was ringing nonstop, and they nearly tripped over each other as they dried up and clothed themselves. 

He had no idea how long Holly had been knocking at the back door, but he hoped beyond hope it wasn’t too long.

She didn’t seem upset as she stepped over the threshold. “Hi, boys!” She frowned and raised an eyebrow. “Did the pipes break?”

Arin patted his wet hair and let out a false laugh. “The dishwasher screwed up,” Arin said. “Dan asked me to help fix it.”

“Oh,” she said shortly. She gently pushed by him and entered the room to find Dan yanking the slightly-too-brown tofu chicken. He yelled an unintelligible curse as he yanked the lid off the dish, then smiled as he saw her. “Hi, Holly. Dinner’s ready.”

*** 

If either of them had hoped for a smooth dinner, they were immediately confronted by their own ridiculousness. Dan couldn’t seem to stop talking as he frantically ate everything set before him and Arin repeatedly left the table to abuse the bathroom. Holly watched their weird behavior with a look of total disbelief in her eyes; midway through the meal she cut the evening short. She had some costumes to take care of, she quickly insisted. 

“I’ll see you guys at the office!” The hugs that followed lasted a bit longer than they usually did. Dan and Arin anxiously watched her go. But the second her car drove up the driveway, they turned toward each other.

Their reactions were simultaneous. 

“Why didn’t you tell me you were into Holly?”


	3. Chapter 3

Dan flushed, shoving his hair back nervously. “What was I supposed to do, dude? ‘Hey bro, y’know this super new relationship we’re in? Hows about adding an extra person in there?”

Arin shrugged, closed the door. “We already have Suz involved,” he said logically. 

“Dude, I am not interested in banging your wife. It would be like doing my own sister…” Arin grinned and Dan fondly tweaked his earlobe.

“No, man – I mean, I’m doing Suz, and Barry and Suz are doing stuff that involves giant strap-ons to each other…” Arin spread his hands apart, insinuating that said strap-on was very huge indeed.

Dan raked a hand through his hair and gave Arin a suffering look. “…Please stop making me imagine Barry doing butt stuff. I have to have breakfast with him every morning.”

“Fine, but anyway – that’s why I didn’t speak up.”

Dan shrugged. “She’s just…”

“…So pretty?” asked Arin. Dan nodded eagerly. 

“But she’s so in love with Ross, dude, I don’t want to fuck it up.”

“That’s not our choice to make,” he pointed out reasonably. 

“True…but why would she say yes if she’s happy?” Dan sighed. “I’m overthinking the hell out of this, aren’t I?”

“Maybe just a bit,” Arin said playfully, squeezing his upper arm. 

Dan leaned into his touch. “I guess we should just…ask?”

“Yeah. I mean, Suz already said yes if it’s Holly…”

“Wait, SUZY already knows? You told her and you basically never told me?!”

“Well, she’s kind of my wife. She guessed right that one time I almost choked while we were having dinner.” Arin said ruefully. Dan flushed.

“Speaking of choking,” Dan said, “If you help me clear the table, I’ll choke on that dong of yours a little.”

“Yeahh, I don’t know if I’m in the mood tonight, babe.”

“Are you…okay, Arin?” Dan asked.

Arin rolled his eyes. “Come on. Let’s finish clearing the table.” 

His wheels were already turning, already helping him plot the next move. Tomorrow, he and Ross were going to film. Tomorrow he’d ask him if he and Holly were into sharing; or if his crush was completely off-limits.

*** 

“Ugh, damn it Arin! That wasn’t cool!”

Arin laughed as Ross’ tiny space marine tumbled off the edge of the cliff, meeting an ugly end in a lava pit. “And next time on Game Grumps we’ll find out if Ross can find his second player.” He waited a second. “It’s up my butt.” 

Ross rolled his eyes as Arin cut the audio. “So, got any weekend plans?”

“Um, sleeping til dawn, then eating as much as humanly possible. How about you?”

Ross laughed. “Ummm, that’s the thing. You remember Brian asking if anyone wanted to go to Peakskill to go skiing with him? Well, I kind of told him yes. You don’t need me tomorrow, do you?”

Arin frowned at the statement. Why would Ross want a vacation? He never went anywhere without Holly. 

Unless. Oh.

_Oh._

Arin grinned. “Anything you need, buddy. I’ll just have the new kids come in.”

He let out a sigh of relief. “Thanks.”

“Any time,” he grinned, already planning a little alone time with both Holly and Dan – once he managed to convince Holly to come over to Dan’s place again.


	4. Chapter 4

“So, Holly,” Arin said, desperately trying to be casual as he leaned against the wall, “how do you feel about Mario Kart?”

She sucked thoughtfully on her bottom lip. “Well,” she said, “I haven’t played it in a long time. Do you and Dan need an extra face on Grumpcade or something like that?”

Arin smiled just a tad too broadly; he hadn’t bothered to make up an excuse. They’re hanging around in the kitchen of the office and she’d been tossing a salad in a plastic container when he’d asked her about her plans for the rest of the day. Arin shifted uncomfortably, watching her hands work. He’s already made the fatal mistake of imagining what it would feel like to have her fingers sprawled upon his leg, the rest of his mental wanderings weren’t doing anything to help conceal his developing hard on. He coughed uncomfortably and shifted against the sink. “We lost a bunch of footage, and Matt and Ryan can’t figure out how to get it back, so Ross said to ask you and…”

If Holly noticed how ridiculously uncomfortable Arin was, she made no comment about his discomfort. She sat down and started eating. “I think Ross is supposed to be going to a meet-up downtown and I said on Twitter I’d be stopping by, but I think I can swing a few hours free, if you like.”

“That sounds good!” His voice cracked and she raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

Arin mopped his sweaty face and tried to smile. Holly didn’t suspect a thing.

*** 

“Smooth,Ar” Dan frowned at the SNES and tried for the hundredth time to make the game work. “Why didn’t you suggest we go to your place?”

“Because the office is closer to where Holly needs to be later,” he said easily. “And I don’t even have Mario Kart at home!”

Dan grunted and gave the cart another blow. To his relief the game immediately filled with the Nintendo logo and he sat back onto the couch. “I’m just not sure I’m comfortable making passionate love to a dear friend this close to so much recording equipment.”

“Didn’t you want to do porn?”

“Not without expressed written permission,” Dan said, with his strange but typical sense of equanimity. 

Arin said nothing as he flopped down beside Dan and received a kiss. “I really hope she doesn’t hate us.”

“Hate who?” Holly asked, surprising them both by suddenly entering the room. She shucked off her hoodie and Arin’s mouth went dry; never mind that it was a typical peasant-blouse-and-pants outfit that she wore frequently, it looked GOOD on her. 

Holly played it cool, flopping down at Dan’s right. “Never mind,” she said, picking up a controller, “Get ready to be humbled, boys.”

“Yes, please,” Dan blurted out, earning a poke to his side from Arin as they picked up the controllers. It was on, and there would show no mercy – even to the girl they both adored so very much.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The date continues apace.

She humbled them both, all right. Without even breaking a sweat, to Dan’s top-of-his-volume consternation and Arin’s high-pitched screaming. When she finally beat him in a head-to-head battle for first place he flung down the control and listened to her laughter as she claimed victory.

He’d forgotten how downright good Holly was at games.

Arin had limited success as well, and soon they all gave up on continuing with their folly, choosing instead to bring out dinner. They ate together sparingly, watching Holly over the tops of their water glasses. She continued to cheerfully act like a normal person.

Arin didn’t know how she could manage to do so.

It was she who finally put down her fork and said, “Dan, Arin – I know something’s wrong. Or at least really weird. Either Ross did something unforgivable or I screwed up a recording. Please, just tell me what’s wrong so I can fix it.”

Both men immediately declaimed any discomfort. “No! It’s nothing, we’re just…admiring your…you-ness,” Dan said helplessly. Arin elbowed him and he grunted. 

“What’s so special about my me-ness?” She asked nervously. “I haven’t even changed my hair color lately.”

“I don’t know how to describe it,” Arin admitted. “It’s just…you being you and being as awesome as you are.”

Holly laughed softly and shook her head. “Thank you, honey.” 

He smiled when she called him honey, almost in spite of himself. “What about a little sugar for Danny, huh?”

“You never call yourself Danny,” she pointed out facetiously, but reached over to kiss his cheek. 

His whole face changed when he kissed her. Arin noticed it, even felt a little jealous. 

“You sure you don’t have anything to say?” she said to him.

“Nothing,” said Arin. But he was staring at her with brand new eyes. 

*** 

They played a couple of rounds of Overwatch, which Dan almost immediately lost. When they walked her to the car she kissed Arin on the cheek too.

“Thanks for tonight, boys,” she said, climbing behind the wheel.

Dan and Arin watched her drive away for an absurdly long time. 

“Do you still love her?” Dan asked Arin suddenly.

“More than ever,” he admitted. “How about you?”

“A ton.” 

They were so screwed. 

With any luck – and a lot of seductive power – they’d end up getting screwed together.

“Dan,” Arin said, “I think it’s time we bought a big ass bottle of champagne.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan and Arin decide to ask Holly out on a for-real date - with both of them.

“I feel like I need a flow chart for this shit,” Dan said abruptly.

Arin looked up from his phone. He’d been showing Dan a video of the roller skating rink he’d been hoping to take Holly to on their next date. “Did you think it was gonna be easy, mister ‘I totally did two girls at once, no really, wanna see the pictures?”

Dan flushed. “This is different! This is romance stuff with a cute girl who I admire and who happens to be one of my closest friend’s wives. That was just sex, which by the way is the best thing ever but it’s just a little bitty part of what I want with you and her.”

“Who we aren’t even actually dating yet. We’re hanging out with her. We are semi-technically pre-date, which means we’re going to have to do a lot of work before we actually go on a real date.”

“Yeah, we should solve that before we rent out the rink.” Holly would likely be embarrassed by their extravagance anyway, but that was Arin – grand gestures versus Dan’s emotional outpourings, most of which never made their way to the public arena.

He didn’t want to admit to anyone he’d started and thrown out several songs inspired by her already.

“Well,” Arin snapped his phone closed and stretched, wincing as elbow joints cracked. “I guess we should just bite the bullet and do it.”

“Okay,” Dan said, reaching for Arin.

“Not with me!” he laughed. “We need to get it together and ask Holly out. On a real date. A really real date.”

Dan laughed. “I’ve got it!” he said. “Wanna go with me to her office?”

It was easy enough to get Arin to agree. The trip was a short one, and they could hear the faint echoes of her finishing off a mailbag as they stood outside and waited for her to finish.

“We should’ve gotten flowers,” Dan realized.

“Or a pigeon,” Arin replied.

Arin knocked when it was quiet, and she asked them to come in. They stood by while she reviewed her footage.

“Hi, boys,” she said, without looking up. “What’s wrong? Does Ross need something?”

“No, but we do!” said Dan. 

Arin took a deep breath. “Remember how we’re going out together? Like going out going out?”

She nodded. “As in dating each other along with other people.”

“Right, and we know this is a big risk. And maybe it sounds a little weird – or weirder than usual. Weird for us? Hey, stop giggling.” Dan nudged Holly but she laughed like a bird, patting his cheek when he pouted. 

“So what are you trying to ask me?” she asked, crossing her arms against her chest and grinning.

“Well, we don’t know if you’re poly, but we’ve heard some stuff from Ross, and we’re both having a great time hanging out with you lately…”

“Can you stop talking to me like the Borg and just ask.”

Dan groaned. Arin rolled his eyes. And together they said, “Will you go out with me?”


	7. Chapter 7

Holly blinked at the two of them. That was not a comforting reaction, and Dan and Arin visibly braced themselves for rejection. “A real date? A poly date? All of us?”

“Yep,” Dan said.

“The two of us together,” said Arin. “And Dan can come too!” That earned him an elbow right in the side, and Dan’s obvious discomfort.

Holly tucked her hands to her hips. She eyeballed the both of them. “So now I know why you wanted to play Mario Kart with me,” Holly said. 

Arin laughed nervously at the proclamation, but Dan nodded eagerly. “I guess we wanted to see if you were interested. Or like, at least looking,” he said.

“So you’re telling me you test-drove me,” said Holly.

“In a non-creepy, douchy, and non-sexist way,” Dan said firmly.

“Exactly,” Arin said. 

Holly contemplated the both of them for long enough to make Dan feel slightly gassy and for Arin to start blushing like a teenager. “Hmm,” she said finally. “I guess you guys could come over to my place tonight. Ross is going to be out doing things with Barry – the sort of things that he wants to be alone to do with him – and I don’t have any other plans. I’ve been thinking of playing a little Overwatch. So,” She walked up to Arin, stood on her tiptoes and pecked his cheek, then did the same for Dan. “If you feel like joining me, I’ll see you then!”

Dan and Arin stood quite still and watched her retreat. “I…think we both need to take showers,” Dan said, bashfully rubbing the lipstick mark she’d left behind.

“Great. Wanna do that together?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

*** 

They were squeaky clean when they arrived at Holly’s place. She, too, had done a bit of sprucing up, and had re-applied her makeup and changed clothing before meeting them. Her sweater was soft pink and her tights were printed with swirling galaxies. “You look beautiful,” Dan said, and handed her a pack of craft beer.

“You really do, Arin said, and the look on his face was the one he usually reserved for Suzy and Dan. She smiled at him more nervously, and welcomed them inside.

Her house, as always, was part animal sanctuary, part cosplay shop, part sci-fi museum. Dan fingered the line of DS9 figures Ross had recently bought while Arin went about trying to fix Holly’s TV so the screen projected ‘correctly’.

“If you break it, you’re buying me a new one,” she said.

“I’m not going to break anything,” Arin promised her. He managed to change the resolution without much fuss, and then got to work calling up Overwatch on Ross’ account.

Dan was still pretty terrible at the game, but he was trying. Holly kept encouraging him with little pats to his thigh, and then praising Arin verbally for doing such a good job. Arin seemed visibly jealous that he as the one getting all of the physical attention. Dan could feel a knot of tension forming low in his stomach over the clear favoritism going on, but he didn’t speak up to protest, instead letting Holly dole out favors to the worthy.

After Arin died a terrible death as MacCree and Dan managed a surprising save has Hanzo, Holly declared it was time to declare the true winners.

“Thank you for saving me,” she said, and kissed Dan on the lips.

Then she straddled Arin’s lap and planted her mouth onto Arin’s, causing him to gape up at her, watching in shock as her hands moved to the hem of her sweater.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Then again...

“Woah,” Arin begged, pulling out of Holly’s grip, trying to get some distance between them.

Holly sat back on his knees, pouting. “Too much at once?”

“Basically,” he said. “I mean – I want to like make out with you and everything, but at the same time we’re like – barely beyond the first date stage. I think we could use some time to get to know each other.”

“Okay…that’s super fair. I’m sorry, I’m really new to the whole poly thing…” She trailed off and glanced sideways, climbing off of Arin’s lap with a flop. 

He soon saw what she could see. “Dan,” Arin said, rubbing his forehead, “please put your pants back on.”

 

*** 

The drive home was a bit chilly. To say the least. Dan stared stonily out the front window, and Arin desperately perused a proper topic of conversation.

“So do you wanna make out, or are you mad at me getting cold feet?”

Dan frowned, letting out a little sigh. “I don’t know. Like, now that we know she’s into us and we’re into her, the whole waiting thing is kind of…a little bit of a shock, I guess?” he said.

“I was trying to be a gentleman. Which is usually your department,” Arin admitted. 

“You succeeded,” Dan said. “And good for you. I just wish I didn’t feel so lost.”

“We’ll get there. Just as soon as everyone feels comfortable,” Arin said. “Y’want some ice cream before we go?”

“Yes, please,” Dan sighed. 

Arin kissed his cheek. In spite of himself, he smiled.

They’d figure out this love thing step by step, he promised himself.


	9. Chapter 9

“Guys – two words: nature hike!”

Dan and Arin stared at Holly as she burst into the office, utterly glowing with excitement. She was almost glimmering with excitement.

“Nature hike?” Dan echoed. He did like those, and rock climbing, but Arin had clearly blanched at the notion of making it out into the wide open spaces.

“Nature hike! We can go bird watching, and then we can camp under the stars.”

“We’ll be there,” Dan said instantly, as Arin extended a middle finger to protest the notion. 

Twenty-four hours they were marching behind Holly into the woods, watching Holly’s bottom wiggling slightly as they marched up the hilly pathway to the campground. Holly pitched the tent, Dan made the fire, and Arin mopped himself of the sweat that had coated his entire body during the long hike.

He was aware of Dan and Holly watching him. Which was why he may have flexed his arms and back just a little bit, just to show off while they went about their business.

Holly coughed, and she turned toward the path. “Who wants to join me for a dip in the lake?”

“Me!” The two men echoed, and followed eagerly behind her.


	10. Chapter 10

“Do not take the current size of my penis for granted,” said Dan, shivering as he crossed his arms over his chest. “The water’s shriveling my nuts.”

“Dude, I’m not looking at your junk right now.” Arin wiggled his eyebrow. “I’ll look at it later.”

“Oh my God,” Dan snorted. They both averted their eyes as Holly swam up, naked as the day she was born. 

“Enjoying the warmth, boys?” Her paddling drew Dan’s attention to her long legs. He immediately tried to distract himself.

“Uh…Lovely. So’s the sun! Big and bright and everything!” he said.

Holly laughed. “Guys, you can look at my boobs. That’s why I took my top off in the first place.”

Dan didn’t realize he was clinging to Arin’s hand under the ater until Holly said those words.

“Okay. This is happening now.” The panic in Dan’s voice was painfully clear. He was not a planned seduction guy. Holly was looking at him with such atypical hunger in her eyes that he couldn’t stop the panic from rising in his expression.

“This is happening,” grinned Arin.

“It’s happening,” Holly agreed. She climbed onto the shore. Pale, stark naked and jaw-droppingly gorgeous. Dan may or may not have purred involuntarily. Watching Holly stride away, he and Arin stumbled their way to the shoreline and followed her, step by step, to the tent.


	11. Chapter 11

Dan’s mouth was on Holly’s neck. He was biting down gently, teasing the muscles. Arin was fingering her open, and his hand was on Dan’s dick. It was sweaty, unprincipled, and frantic; she never normally felt this way when she was having sex. She never normally felt that way, period.

Outside it was storming, pulsing. As if the gods were applauding them for giving in to their baser instincts.

When she came It was around Arin, who came around Dan, who came around nothing at all.


End file.
